The notes from the recruiting thoughts section from tomorrow's War Room:

RECRUITING THOUGHTS:

Gary Bryant The transfer from USC had a very good trip – as evidenced from the video shared by his father. Miami and Texas A&M are going to make a strong push with Bryant. I know what people might be thinking so I will break it down real quick.

It really won’t matter much to Bryant if Jimbo Fisher is gone after this year or not. Yes, he has two seasons of eligibility and smart money is on him playing two more seasons, but if he feels that he can get enough opportunity and exposure at Texas A&M and his dad likes the staff enough, then they stand a chance.

As for Miami, while there may be something to their offensive system being somewhat dull last season and a track record of less than explosive offenses under Mario Cristobal a couple of things should be remembered.

First, Cristobal already has a relationship with the Bryant family that goes back to his first recruitment as a member of the 2020 class. That relationship is going to have value. Second, while there might be some who think the brakes will be put on the offense, the Miami offensive coordinator comes off a successful stint at Houston that featured a lot of passing opportunities. Without significant negative recruiting, that will appeal to Bryant.

After saying all of that, Bryant also has a very strong relationship with Junior Adams that goes back to his original recruitment as well. There is a strong belief that he could have a fantastic opportunity in the Will Stein offense. And with Bo Nix at the helm, it is the one school right now that has an established successful QB to get him the ball.

There is a good feeling by the staff here. The Bryant family had a great time and the coaches have all done a fantastic job connecting with the entire family. The feeling is that dad will have an influence on this decision based on what is best for the long-term for Bryant and that right now looks good for Oregon. A decision is expected prior to the spring game within the next three to four weeks. Unless A&M or Miami really blow this out of the water, I like where Oregon sits right now.

Aaron Flowers I know I mentioned him on Monday, but I was told again today that Flowers had an incredible visit with family. I am hearing that he may be close to a decision soon. Several staff members have been recruiting him for a while. Will Stein has strong connections in Texas, but there are a few others that have even stronger connections.

While there is no silent commit, what I have heard is that there is a feeling that people on the Oregon side of the equation feel very strongly about Flowers choosing Oregon over other schools. As it was told to me ‘Oregon is definitely in a good spot’ with Flowers.

Bennett Warren It is sort of a cliché to say someone had a great time on their visit – generally speaking pretty much every football prospect that visits Oregon has a good time. So I won’t go too deep into Warren having a good time – other than to say he enjoyed it enough to lock in an official visit in late June (23-25) a week after visiting Oklahoma.

I think that this one will be a little bit more difficult. Oregon has strong connections in Texas – and have done a good job recruiting the state over the years, but getting a big offensive lineman (6-8, 318) is a little bit different than getting elite skill players.

The Ducks did everything right, though, and Warren came away feeling as if the integrity of the staff is what was most impressive. There was not a lot of sooth-saying to appease what Warren wanted to hear. I think A’lique Terry will need to really work on deepening the relationship here over the next couple of months, but Oregon did a lot to make up tremendous ground here. For what it is worth, his decision to make an unofficial visit a little over a month after his initial offer shows a lot of excitement on his part about Oregon.

Getting him out for the official could be a deal sealing visit. But we probably won’t know much more until then.

Ryner Swanson Adam had an article on him earlier this week. Right now, I like Utah here, but he has some strong ties to Oregon and I think that the Ducks did a great job on his visit in January. He brought his dad along who was surprised at how much he liked the program and the staff. He is supposed to make it up to Eugene for a practice later in the spring. Things could change – especially given that Oregon is light on tight ends right now – but for now I think Oregon is not he leader.

FROM OUTKICK

https://www.outkick.com/pac-12-oregon-big-ten-usc-ucla/

His combine was off the charts. I just wish we had two of his last year.

Love to see Biddle step up his game again.

Asking for a friend!

While running on a local HS track today, I spotted a big kid on the football field being drilled by his father on pass blocking footwork and balance. As I got closer, I recognized his father ( I met him once) The big kid was Washington O linemen, Robert Wyrsch.

I guess that he’s home on spring break. The strange thing is that his dad played college baseball not football, but was still coaching him on his technique. They were intensely serious about what they were doing but took a few moments to exchange pleasantries …. even though I was in a green Oregon Hoodie.

He only played one year of high school football, but was a dominant high school player.

He may be a Husky but he is a home town kid playing in the PAC 12 & the Big 10 LOL. The Huskies are huge rivals but to a Northern California grown Duck, USC will always be the biggest game. I think that most of us cheer for Washington when they play USC. If you had grown up right next to Stanford, you’d understand…. and there is no shortage of Ducks who grew up near Stanford.

and the Ducks mean business

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The Ducks are one of the programs Stone wants to visit this spring. Update on Rivals:

Home game vs.Rice....Go Lady Ducks!

He did all of his grad work at Stanford
He loves sports … especially football and track

After an impressive 26-point routing of UC Irvine in round 1, No. 1 seed Oregon hosts UCF at home in round 2 of the NIT. The Ducks were without three starters against the Anteaters but found success up and down the roster, non-scholarship players included. A repeat team effort will be key to getting past a good Knights team. Tip-off is in 10 minutes.

Right here:

Go Lady Ducks!

www.facebook.com/OregonSoftball/photos/a.201363463228665/6378616295503320/

They lost game one 7-1 as starting pitching and the offense struggled! Game two and three saw starting pitching struggling again especially with free passes…but…the bats exploded for 14 runs in game two and 13 today to win 2-3 of the games!
Always good to win a series, especially on the road!!!

Go Ducks!
www.facebook.com/OregonMBB/photos/a.151578498241430/6122438104488743/

Per the Oregonian. Not too surprising as his name has surfaced as someone who would likely depart the program.

With speculation running rampant, I will share what I have heard from a high-ranking law enforcement official. The crux of this is that Traeshon did everything he could to soothe what was a potentially violent situation that could have ended significantly worse.

Some background, Holden had a girlfriend who had been staying elsewhere for several days and had a different girl in his apartment. When the other girlfriend came back that night, she saw the other girl’s bag. Holden calmly walked her out to the car, got her apartment key and tried to have a conversation with her before she left. She had smashed a cell phone on the ground and as he headed back to the building he picked up the pieces.

A neighbor was watching the dispute from a window, came down and let the girl back into the apartment building a few minutes later. The girlfriend, neighbor and neighbor’s fiancé came to Holden’s door, where the girlfriend was shouting, kicking the door, throwing shoes and causing a disturbance. When Holden opened the door, the girl tried to push in, Holden pushed her out, and the two argued at the door about the girlfriend wanting to enter to “see” the other girl inside.

Holden said no and asked/demanded all three leave. Girlfriend slapped him in the face and struck him in the chest. When she tried to push in again, Holden pushed her back out. At this point, girlfriend fell to the ground and neighbor pepper sprayed Holden on the cheek and mouth area. Once the incident (now involving two aggressors and third man in close proximity) reached this level, Holden said something about having a gun or shooting them and retreated into the apartment before returning with a pistol that he carried at his side, pointed down. It is disputed whether Holden racked a round (disputed), then the girlfriend asked “are you gonna shoot me?”

Holden shrugged his shoulders and walked into the apartment and closed the door. When girlfriend didn’t leave he and a security guard escorted her out. She broke a hand sanitizer on the way out.

Afterward, the girlfriend was very clear she did not want to press charges. Had he not brought the gun out, this case would have ended very differently, as he wasn’t aggressive or violent at all. But, by introducing a gun, law enforcement felt compelled to do something. Nevertheless, based on the limited use and actions with the gun it could not be proved he used it inappropriately. He has a self defense and defense of property claim to every action.

Should be good reads.

Had this in Flock Talk, but wanted to share with you all tonight:

Weekend Visitors

I will start with one who was here midweek with a visit from elite defensive back Bryce West. This is the longest of long shots right now as the Cleveland (OH) star is considered a heavy lean to Ohio State. But the Ducks really like him and would love to find a way to steam him from the Midwest power. I still think he ends up somewhere in the Midwest, and very likely that is Ohio State. But this is one of those things that Dan Lanning is going to do – recruit the best of the best and not shy away from someone that feels like a “lock” to another school.

I did mention that Ify Obidegwu would be in town, but there are a couple of others set to visit as well. One significant recruit that will be in town is commit Fox Crader. He will get a chance to develop that relationship with new OL coach A’lique Terry in person and to see that he is still going to be in good hands. I think a good weekend resolidifies Crader, so we will see how the weekend goes.

Here is the rest of the list.

OREGON COMMITS:

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TRANSFER TARGET:

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THE REST:

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Leslie and I are celebrating our 16th wedding anniversary (19 together) today. The plan is to spend tonight and tomorrow in Seaside, so I probably won't check in much until late in the day when she is asleep. As a humorous anecdote, however, we each bought each other anniversary cards. She bought hers two weeks ago and I bought one earlier this week. Turns out - we bought each other the exact same card! Not sure if that says more about how similar we are or about the lack of uniqueness in the greeting card industry!

We have changed a lot in the last 16 years - and she is the most patient person in the world to deal with all of my work, LOL.

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2-1. Morgan Scott with a four hitter and Bunker was 2-3 with a homer and both RBI’s!

Good job ladies!!

The sun was out this morning for spring practice #2 as the Ducks spent a lot of time stretching but also worked on punt & kick returning, offensive line formations, and fumble protection drills.